Pretty Love
by yunakitty
Summary: The beautiful, sweet little romance between Pretty Boy and J, the main characters of Omocat's Pretty Boy. You can find this original comic on Omocat's Tumblr. It's only 10 pages, but it is one of the sweetest things I have ever seen. Check it out and then read this. M-rated for future chapters. Starts the day after J rescues Pretty Boy from the bullies.
1. Chapter 1

"H-Hey."

Pretty Boy looked up from the graphic novel he had spread open on the cafeteria table. His face lit up when he saw his blonde haired hero, J, standing there, lacing his fingers together nervously. "Oh, hi," he said softly, in that beautifully melodious voice.

"Can I s-sit down?" J asked.

"Sure," Pretty Boy responded.

J sat down across from him, eyeing the small white bit of bandage on Pretty Boy's cheek. He himself was sporting a black eye and two very battered fists, the result of saving Pretty Boy from a bully attack the previous afternoon. "Are you okay?" he wanted to know.

"Hmm? Oh, yes, I think so." One delicate hand floated up to touch gingerly at the bandage. "The doctor said it shouldn't scar."

"That's good," J breathed out. It would be a crime against humanity to lessen the perfection that was Pretty Boy's face.

"They temporarily mended my tooth," Pretty Boy added. "I'm going to the dentist on Friday to fix it permanently. But you can't even tell it was broken. See?" He flashed that dazzling smile, causing J to blush in reaction.

"No, you can't tell," J agreed. "I couldn't find the other half of mine though, so they're going to have to cap it. So I still look kinda bad." He grinned sheepishly, showing a broken canine tooth on the left side of his mouth.

"It's hardly visible," Pretty Boy assured him.

"Really? That's a relief." J straightened up, getting serious. "Listen, I don't want anything like that to ever happen to you again."

"Oh, well..." Pretty Boy looked away, his eyes downcast. "That kind of thing happens a lot. That was the worst it ever was, but it's not really out of the ordinary for bullies to pick on me. They mostly just yell stuff, but it happens all the time."

"Well, it's not going to happen anymore!" J said vehemently, and then he checked himself, startled at his own fervor. "I mean... how about I take you home from now on? So nobody can bother you."

Pretty Boy lifted up those magnificent, doe like eyes. "Really? You would do that for me?"

"Of course!" J replied eagerly. "I'll take you _to_ school too, if you want. And if you give me your schedule, I'll be glad to walk you between classes, if you think anyone's gonna bother you in the hallways."

"Oh." Pretty Boy looked down at the table, and then back up. "Isn't that a lot of trouble for you?"

"I don't mind at all!" J insisted. "I really wanna protect you! I'll protect you no matter what!" He went red suddenly, embarrassed at his own candid words.

But Pretty Boy was just smiling happily, his eyes crinkled up. "Okay, that would be great!" He took out a sheet of paper and started writing down his schedule.

J fidgeted nervously while he did. He was always overwhelmed in the presence of such sparkling beauty.

When lunch was over, J walked Pretty Boy to his next class, which was Biology in the C Hallway. J's own class, English, was in the next hallway over. "Okay, you wait for me here after the bell rings, okay? Just stay in there with the teacher; you'll be safe. I'll get here as quickly as I can."

"Thanks..." Pretty Boy said quietly, looking extremely grateful.

J nodded in determination, and turned to hurry off to his own class.

As soon as the bell rang, J stuffed his papers and book in his backpack, and hustled back to the C Hallway. He approached the doorway to the science room nervously. Pretty Boy was still in his desk, watching the door, and once J appeared, he smiled and gathered up his things. They walked outside and into the adjacent building, where they both had their 5th period classes. "So, uh... you're a sophomore, right?" J asked.

"Uh huh."

"Oh, okay... I'm a junior."

"I know." Pretty Boy smiled over at him as they walked.

"Oh yeah, I told you before. Uh, this is your class, right?" J looked up at the number over the door.

"Uh huh." Pretty Boy stopped before the entrance, and turned around to face him. "Thanks," he said, smiled, and then went into the classroom.

J stared after him for a moment, then gathered his wits together again and headed off down the hallway.

They repeated this for the next class, and once that was over, it was the end of his day. J walked Pretty Boy to his locker. He was glad to see there were no ugly markings on it today. The janitor had scrubbed them off. J inhaled slowly through his nose. If he ever caught who was doing that, he was going to make them pay. _No one_ was allowed to say or do _anything_ to Pretty Boy. Not under his watch.

After Pretty Boy had exchanged out the books he would need to take home, they left the school. J's car, a beat up but well running Mustang, was parked in the junior/senior parking lot at the far edge of the property. J opened the passenger door to let Pretty Boy in, and then shut the door and went around to get into the driver's side. He then started up the car and backed out carefully.

Pretty Boy gave directions as they rode. He lived just three miles from the school, so they were there rather quickly. J was a bit disappointed as he pulled the car in the driveway. The short drive hadn't given them much of a chance to talk privately. He had so many things he wanted to say to Pretty Boy, but it was going to take more time than five minutes to build up the courage.

Pretty Boy turned to him, his floral print backpack on one shoulder. "Thanks," he said quietly.

"You're welcome," J responded. "What time should I pick you up?"

"7:30? Is that too late?"

J shook his head. "No, that'll be just fine." Homeroom didn't start until 7:50am, so that would give them a little time to spare. "Uh, okay... so I'll see you tomorrow?"

Pretty Boy just sat, making no move to exit the car. "Want to come inside?" he asked.

"Eh?!" J was surprised. His cheeks got red. "Is it okay?"

Pretty Boy shrugged. "Yeah."

J swallowed nervously and shut the car off. He undid his seatbelt. "Will your parents mind?"

"Parents? Oh, no. It's just my mom. And she works second shift at the hospital, which is 3-11pm. So no one's home."

"No one's home..." J echoed as he got out of the car. He could hear his pulse beating in his ears.

Pretty Boy led him up to the front door, where he opened it with a key. They stepped inside. The house was small, but cozy, with comfortable looking furniture. Pretty Boy dropped his backpack in the entryway, and led J to the back door. "Do you want to see my rose garden?" he asked shyly.

"Yes!" J replied. He had seen the pictures of roses on Pretty Boy's blog, and he'd always wanted to see the garden in person. He followed him outside again, where they stepped down two concrete steps into an enclosed backyard garden.

J was astounded. There were roses blooming everywhere. Pink, red, white, orange, yellow, and all sorts of mixtures. There were small roses and big roses. A pillar of climbing red roses flanked the back wall.

Pretty Boy moved from bush to bush, identifying them by sight. "Mr. Lincoln. Showtime. Veteran's Honor. Tiffany. Moonstone. Picante. Fragrant Cloud. Tropicana." He paused at one bush. "Double Delight," he said of the dark pink and white striped bloom. "Smell it."

J dipped his head, and came back up. "Wow! It smells just like you!" he exclaimed before he could stop himself. Then he flushed, embarrassed that he had admitted he knew what Pretty Boy smelled like.

But Pretty Boy was just laughing lightly. "Do you think so? Thank you. It _is_ one of the most fragrant flowers there is. Most rose scented bath products are based off of this scent. And I always use Taylor's rose soap."

"Oh." J couldn't say much else. He was using most of his brain to imagine Pretty Boy in the shower, lathering up a bar of pink soap, then he shut his eyes fiercely and shook his head to dispel the erotic image. "What's this one called?" he asked hurriedly, trying to cover up his embarrassment.

"Iceberg," Pretty Boy responded, touching one white petal. "Do you like it?"

"Yeah!" J said. "I like how it has so many blooms all on one stem."

"Mmm, I like it too," Pretty Boy agreed. "But it doesn't show that well."

"Show?" J was confused.

Pretty Boy swiveled his head to face him. "I grow these roses to show," he explained. "At rose shows. Everyone gets together and brings their best roses. The judges hand out ribbons. It's really a lot of fun."

"I'd love to go to one with you someday," J said, a little nervously.

"Oh, would you?" Pretty Boy cocked his head to the side. "I'd like that." He smiled. "It might be a little boring for you, though."

J shook his head vehemently. "No, it could never be boring if you were there!" he insisted, again speaking before he could stop himself. He flushed and stammered.

But Pretty Boy just crinkled his eyes up adorably. "You're sweet," he laughed.

J was left even more flushed.

They returned inside about five minutes later, after making the rounds of the whole garden. Pretty Boy retrieved his backpack from the foyer, and then turned and headed down the hallway. J followed him, his heart beating loudly.

At the end of the hall, Pretty Boy pushed open a door. "This is my room," he said simply, and went inside.

J stepped inside as well, and marveled. Everything was roses. There were framed posters of roses. There were ceramic roses on the dresser. The walls were a creamy white, and the carpet was a dusty pink. The twin bed with its brass plated headboard had a rose printed comforter on it. The scent of rose powder hung in the air. "Wow, you really, really do like roses," was the only thing J was able to say.

"Yes, I do," Pretty Boy agreed with a laugh.

J walked over to the bookshelf. The top row was all sorts of books on gardening, rose tending in particular. The lower rows were volumes and volumes of graphic novels. J stooped to inspect them, and blushed at the titles. It was very apparent what genre they were. He had already seen enough from glances over at what Pretty Boy was reading at school to know that he was into yaoi. It seemed to be all he read.

J turned away from the bookshelf before he could get more embarrassed by the track his mind was traveling on, and walked over to the window. He parted the gauzy pink curtains and tipped one blind down with his finger to survey the view. "Oh, it looks out over your garden," he observed.

"Mmhmm," Pretty Boy agreed. "I like to open the blinds first thing in the morning so I can see my garden while I get ready. Even though I'm going to go out and work in it not long after, it always starts my day off right to look out over it while the early morning sun is shining off the dew on the petals."

"Wow, that sounded really poetic," J said, scratching the back of his neck. "Oh, did you need to do anything in the garden now?" he asked suddenly. "I don't mean to keep you from it. Does it need watering?"

"No, silly," Pretty Boy giggled, a high, tinkling sound. J could feel his ears turning red just from hearing it. "You only water roses in the morning. Never put babies to bed with wet feet or wet heads," he said.

"Huh?" J was confused.

Pretty Boy laughed again. "It's a saying one of my old lady friends in the rose society taught me. You should never water rose bushes at night. If they have wet feet, their roots, then they can get nematodes. If they have wet heads, their leaves, then they can get mildew."

"Oh, I see." J turned away from the window and looked at him.

Pretty Boy was sitting on the bed now. J swallowed hard and looked around the room for a chair.

There wasn't one.

Pretty Boy patted the space next to him. "Sit down," he urged him.

J nodded his head dumbly, and stepped forward. Nervously, he slowly sat down on the edge of the bed, keeping a respectful amount of space between them. The soft flowered bedspread sank under his thighs.

They said nothing for a few minutes, and they didn't look at each other. J could feel his heart pounding, and he was sure that it was so loud that even the neighbors could feel it.

He looked down at his hands, and was pleasurably alarmed as he saw one of Pretty Boy's delicate hands edging towards it. Pretty Boy simply laid one small hand on top of J's. J swallowed hard and turned his hand over, so that his sweaty palm was facing up. Pretty Boy laced his slim fingers between J's thick ones.

They sat in silence for another few minutes. J couldn't bring himself to even look at Pretty Boy's face. He didn't think he could handle that amount of beauty right then. They just sat quietly, holding hands.

Pretty Boy was the first one to speak. "J..." he whispered. "Do you like me?"

J swung his head to face Pretty Boy, and his heart threatened to beat out of his chest as he saw that beautiful face looking up at him so earnestly. "Yes!" he exclaimed, much louder and more insistently than he had meant to do. "Yes..." he said in a lower voice. "I do. A lot." He blushed and had to drop his gaze down to their hands. "D-Do you... like me?" he managed to ask.

"Oh, yes," Pretty Boy breathed back. He squeezed J's hand gently.

"Wow..." J was unable to say much else.

They sat for another few minutes in silence.

J summoned up every ounce of courage he had, and turned his head to look at Pretty Boy again. "Pretty Boy..." he began nervously. "Will... Will you... Will you go out with me?"

"I'd love to," Pretty Boy whispered, a soft smile spreading across his face as he looked up at J.

"Wow..." J said again, and then cursed himself silently for being so dumb. He couldn't help it, though. He just couldn't think when he was around Pretty Boy. Especially not when they were alone like this.

They gazed back and forth for a minute. Finally, Pretty Boy let his eyes close with a flutter. He leaned his head forward just slightly, pursing those perfect little lips as he did so.

J's eyes widened. He knew what this meant. Pretty Boy wanted a kiss. Suddenly, he felt frozen to the spot, like he couldn't move. He was just so terrified of messing it up. But he knew he couldn't leave Pretty Boy hanging. He forced himself to come to life again. He dropped his head down, and pressed his own lips against Pretty Boy's.

Pretty Boy let out a happy little sigh as they exchanged their first kiss. J just tried not to pass out. He was so excited and scared and delighted that he couldn't think straight.

They came apart after a few seconds, and Pretty Boy opened his eyes. "Did you like it?" he whispered.

J nodded furiously.

Pretty Boy just smiled. "Then, can we do it again?"

J nodded furiously once more.

Pretty Boy closed his eyes, and their lips met for the second time. This time, they weren't quite so pursed and nervous. J's hot, excited lips pressed against Pretty Boy's soft, full ones. J raised his free hand and brought it to Pretty Boy's shoulder, petting there gently. His thumb touched one of those beautiful collar bones that he had admired so many times, and he felt a pleasant rush go through his body.

After a little while, they parted their lips. J looked down at their intertwined hands. "I'd better get home," he said, somewhat reluctantly.

"Oh," Pretty Boy said, sounding a little disappointed.

"I'm sorry!" J apologized profusely. "I really want to stay, but it's Tuesday and that's the day I have to do the laundry and my mom gets really mad if we don't stick to our chore schedules!" he said in a rush.

To his relief, Pretty Boy just laughed lightly. "It's okay," he assured him. He looked up, those big earnest eyes wide and sparkling. "See you in the morning?"

"Yeah," J agreed happily. They stood up, and Pretty Boy walked him to the front door.

"Thanks so much... for everything..." Pretty Boy said as they parted.

"No, thank you," J breathed out. He hesitated, then leaned in and gave Pretty Boy one quick kiss on the lips. "Bye..." He turned and went through the front door.

"Bye..." Pretty Boy echoed.

J got in his car and started it up. He gave one last longing glance at the house, where Pretty Boy was still standing in the doorway, his fingers to his lips. J smiled, knowing that he would see him again soon.


	2. Chapter 2

When J pulled up in front of Pretty Boy's house the next morning, he put the car in park while furrowing his brow. Should he go up to the front door and knock? He knew for sure that he shouldn't honk the horn; his mother had always taught him that to do so was extremely rude.

But his problems were solved for him as Pretty Boy appeared at the front door and skipped lightly down the steps. He hopped into the passenger side and fastened his seat belt, sliding his backpack between his feet on the floorboard. "Good morning," he chirped happily.

"Good morning," J echoed, feeling his face getting hot as the scent of roses filled the car. It seemed stronger than usual, and he realized why as Pretty Boy set a clear plastic cup filled with water into the cup holder. It was holding three Double Delight roses.

"For you," Pretty Boy said, smiling.

"Oh, wow, thanks," J said. "N-No one's ever given me flowers before."

"Well, I know you said you liked them, and I figured it would make your car smell really good," Pretty Boy explained.

J just nodded and put the car in reverse. At school, he dutifully walked Pretty Boy from class to class, feeling like a proud bodyguard. Anyone that eyed them curiously, he returned their gaze so sharply that they were forced to look away.

At the end of the school day, J suddenly exclaimed, "Oh, crap!"

"Hmm?" Pretty Boy turned from his locker. "What's wrong?"

"Arg, I totally forgot. Today's Wednesday. I have football practice on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, right after school. I can't take you home right now because I have to stay here."

Pretty Boy looked down at the ground. "Oh, it's okay," he said faintly. "I'll be all right walking home alone."

"No, you won't!" J said vehemently. "I don't want you to walk home. I'll take you home. I'll ditch practice."

"No!" Pretty Boy insisted. "Football practice is important! You said yourself that you need a football scholarship to go to college. You can't do anything to jeopardize that."

"I know, but..." J sounded miserable, unsure of what to do. "Wait, I know!" he exclaimed. "You can come to practice with me! Have you got homework to do, or something to read?"

Pretty Boy smiled. "I always have something to read," he said, sounding amused.

J blushed a little as he thought of the kind of book that Pretty Boy surely had. Two men, locked in a passionate embrace... J shook his head and forced himself to focus on the task at hand. "Great," he said. "You can sit on the sidelines while I practice. It'll probably be boring for you but..."

"No, I love watching you play football," Pretty Boy assured him.

"Oh yeah," J said. He remembered how he sometimes had seen Pretty Boy watching home games through the fence. "So it's fine?"

"Yeah," Pretty Boy said. J nodded in relief, and they headed for the gym together.

Pretty Boy waited outside the locker room as J changed for practice, then they went out onto the field together. Pretty Boy took a seat on a bench, and took out his math homework. He was working out problems as J began jogging around the field with his teammates for a warmup. J nodded to his three friends, T, C, and G, who were all also on the team. All three of them had evidence on their faces of the scuffle that had occurred two days previously when they helped him save Pretty Boy. "Hey guys, 'sup?" he asked.

"Not much," T panted. He was the heaviest of the group, and suffered the most at warm up. "Man, your shiner looks worse than yesterday!" he commented.

"Yeah, it's really gettin' all ugly and yellow," J agreed.

C chimed in. "My nuts are so sore," he complained. "One of those losers kicked me in 'em before I beat him to a pulp."

The four guys laughed as they ran. "Still, I'm really glad we could get there in time," G said. "That coulda been really bad."

"Yeah, I'm glad too," J said grimly. "But nothing's gonna happen to him now. I'm not gonna let it."

"Yeah, I seen you walking him around school the last coupla days," T said. "That's real nice of you."

J flushed. "It's just the right thing to do," he mumbled. He knew that his friends probably knew how he felt about Pretty Boy. His actions were pretty darn transparent.

As if reading his mind, G spoke up again. "Soooo... you asked him out yet?" he wanted to know.

C was grinning as well. "Yeah, come on dude, spill the beans! I saw you driving away together yesterday! What happened?"

J's face was completely red as his friends ragged him. "All right, all right, shut up, you guys!" he barked. He chewed on his lip. "Yeah... I asked him out," he finally admitted.

His friends cheered in response. "And?!" C demanded.

"And... he said yeah." J couldn't help but smile widely now. His friends made even more noise. "Shut up already!" he demanded, but he was laughing happily. He sure was glad he had such supportive friends. From day one, they hadn't questioned his attraction to Pretty Boy, just accepted it. After all, they were quite smitten with Pretty Boy's face as well. It was hard to look at that beautiful face and not be moved. It was like a work of art.

They jogged for a couple of moments, and then C spoke again. "You kiss him yet?" he asked slyly.

J looked away, jogging a little faster. "Maybe..." he mumbled.

"Oh yeah, he totally did!" G concluded. G, T, and C all high fived each other.

"Would you guys knock it off?" J begged. "Everybody's lookin' at us. They think we've gone crazy or something."

His friends settled down, and they continued to warm up. When they moved together with the group to the center of the field to do push ups and other exercises, J quickly looked over at Pretty Boy to check on him. To his relief, he was still busily writing away, safe and sound.

J fell to the ground, coming into push up position. He was toiling away when he heard a voice in front of him. "Check it out," a teammate he didn't know that well was hissing to his neighbor. "What's that queer kid doing here?"

J's face flushed angrily. The other jerk spoke. "I saw him come with J. Probably his little gay boyfriend or something." They obviously didn't realize J was right behind them.

Everyone was standing up to move from pushups to jumping jacks, and J caught the jerk's eye as he turned. The guy wavered for a moment, then sneered at him. "Why'd you bring your gay boyfriend to practice, J?" he snickered. "Does he get turned on watching all us guys get sweaty?"

J couldn't stop himself. He lunged forward, shoving the jerk in the chest. Being that J was an offensive tackle, and the strongest guy on the team, the jerk went down on his ass. "You shut your mouth," he barked down at him. "I gotta protect him from assholes like you!"

The coach was intervening now. "All right, break it up, break it up!" he demanded. "Save it for the opposing team!" He turned away, aggravated, and instructed the defense side of the team to do some drills together.

The jerk turned back to J. He was really pushing his luck now. "You're gay, aren't ya? That pretty boy is your _boyfriend_." He sang out the last word in a mocking way.

"Yeah, and _what_? You got a problem with it?" J growled, stepping in closer.

The jerk's eyes got wide. "Wait, what? You serious?" He had never expected J to actually admit to it. Somehow, it took all the steam out of his taunting. "What the fuck?" He turned away.

The guy next to him leaned over and hissed. "Didn't you hear about that? That pretty boy was getting beaten up by some guys, and J and his posse jumped in and saved him! I heard those guys all got seriously fucked up, and they got arrested on top of that!" He looked warningly at the jerk. "I wouldn't mess with J if I were you. He broke one guy's jaw."

"Whatever," the jerk huffed, blowing him off. The group fell to doing lunges, and the discussion was dropped.

The team came back together, and started doing some scrimmages. Every chance he got, J would look over and check on Pretty Boy. This time, when he checked, Pretty Boy had his book in his lap and was watching J intently. J flushed, and then turned back to the practice play. Knowing that Pretty Boy was watching him, he lowered his shoulder and barreled forward, putting his all into tackling his teammate.

The teammate stood up, panting as he recovered from the sack. "Whoa, J. You ain't messin' around, huh?"

"Good job, J," the coach called. "Everyone, that's exactly what I'm talking about." He motioned to J and the teammate he had just tackled. "Do it again. Everyone, watch."

The teammate groaned. "Aw, man, I gotta get hit like that again?" He sighed, and then lowered his stance, trying to hold his ground. He was completely railroaded by J despite his best efforts.

"That's it!" the coach exclaimed. "That's what I'm looking for. When the other team has the ball, you need to lower your shoulder and go in hard. Don't hesitate. That second that you hesitate, that's when the other guy's going to throw it or run and your chance is gone." He clapped his hands rapidly. "All right, fall in! We're going to do blitz drills!"

Some of the teammates groaned as they moved into position. J glanced over at Pretty Boy quickly, and saw him gazing over with his elbows on his knees and his chin on his fists. J turned his head back and gave his all to the drills, determined to impress Pretty Boy.

At the end of practice, the coach clapped him on the back. "Good job out there, J. You keep it up, and you're gonna catch the eye of a recruiter for sure."

J nodded, encouraged. He headed over to Pretty Boy. "Hey, thanks for waiting so long."

"No problem." Pretty Boy stretched and stood up. "Are we going home now?"

"Yeah, we are," J said. "I just gotta get a quick shower first." He wiped his brow with his upper arm. "Sorry, I'm just so sweaty."

"It's fine," Pretty Boy murmured. He picked up his backpack and followed J into the gym.

J hesitated before going in. He didn't want to leave Pretty Boy outside alone, especially not since he knew there was at least one jerk present. He snagged G before he went in. "Hey man, will you stand out here with Pretty Boy while I get a super quick shower? Three minutes, tops."

"Sure, no problem," G agreed. He nervously looked at Pretty Boy, and then looked away. The guy was just too pretty to even look at properly!

"Thanks, bro," J said, and hurried into the locker room. He stripped off his clothes as fast as he could, and hurried into a shower stall, not even caring that it was still cold. He rinsed all the sweat off, scrubbed his body with soap, and rinsed again. He was out and toweling off sixty seconds later, and he threw his school clothes back on.

He rushed back out to where G was guarding Pretty Boy. "Thanks," he said again, out of breath. G just nodded, cast another shy glance at Pretty Boy, and disappeared into the locker room.

Pretty Boy and J were driving off soon after. "You hungry?" J asked. After all, the sun had already set. He gestured at a fast food place.

Pretty Boy nodded, and they went through the drive through. They headed back to Pretty Boy's house, and ate in the kitchen, talking about school.

After they were done and had cleaned up, Pretty Boy looked up at J. "Want to go to my room?" he asked shyly.

J swallowed hard and nodded.

In Pretty Boy's room, they sat on the bed side by side, their hands slowly finding their way together. Their fingers intertwined, and they sat quietly. The only thing that could be heard in the still room was J's heavy breathing.

Pretty Boy finally spoke. "Want to kiss again?" he asked.

"Yeah..." J turned his head and dipped it down. Their mouths met and they kissed with closed lips for a while.

After a little bit though, Pretty Boy opened his mouth slightly, bringing J's lower lip between his lips. J didn't know what to do. He finally parted his own lips, hesitantly, and was thrilled out of his skin as Pretty Boy swiped his tongue into his mouth.

J responded in kind, his own tongue coming forward to explore Pretty Boy's mouth. Pretty Boy sighed, his small, delicate hand coming up to rest on J's cheek. They tentatively kissed at first, but slowly it began to heat up. They let go of their interlaced hands, and J brought his fingers up to tangle in Pretty Boy's soft, silky hair. Pretty Boy moaned into his mouth, and J rolled his eyes back in his head, letting out a groan. He was so turned on now. There was no going back.

He pressed Pretty Boy gently back into the bed, continuing to kiss him deeply. One hand stroked down from his neck to his chest, petting carefully there. His thumb rubbed over a hard bump under Pretty Boy's shirt, and he knew by the little cry that Pretty Boy released into the kiss that it was his nipple. J brought his hand down to the hem of Pretty Boy's shirt and lifted the edge, sliding his hand underneath. His hand felt cold against Pretty Boy's warm chest, and it made his little boyfriend shiver, but J's fingers insistently sought out that bump again.

Once he had found it, he rolled it gently between his finger and his thumb, marveling at how it made Pretty Boy cry out. They had come out of the kiss, breathing heavily, and J looked down on Pretty Boy's enraptured, beautiful face in fascination. His eyes were shut, his long black lashes resting on his blushing cheeks.

J brought his hand to the other nipple and played with it as well. Pretty Boy gave a fresh set of cries. J didn't want to muffle the lovely sound, so he didn't cover Pretty Boy's mouth when he lowered his head to kiss him. He brought his lips to Pretty Boy's soft, sweet smelling neck instead.

Pretty Boy cried out even more as J kissed his neck. J's heart was pounding. He could feel his pulse in his ears, in his chest... and especially he could feel it throbbing in his groin. He wanted so badly to lower his hips and grind his body against Pretty Boy's. He didn't really know that much about sex. Sure, he masturbated frequently. He knew how to do _that _to himself. But he didn't know how exactly it worked for two people. He didn't know what came first, what he was expected to do, what was okay to do... his thoughts were a huge jumble.

He was jolted back to reality by something completely unexpected. He almost came immediately as he felt Pretty Boy's hand sliding over the front of his pants. "Aahh-hhh!" he cried out, loudly and brokenly.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Pretty Boy said hurriedly. "Do you not want me to touch you?"

"Oh, God no. I mean yes! I mean, please do touch me," J begged, sounding desperate.

Pretty Boy murmured something quietly and continued to pet J's erection through his pants.

J groaned in pleasure. Lost in his own desire, he had totally abandoned his exploration of Pretty Boy's body. All he could think about was those wonderful, frustratingly gentle sensations on his cock. It felt so stifled and muted through the clothing, that before he really knew what he was doing, he reached down and flicked open the button of his pants and tugged down the zipper. He sighed in relief as his erection, covered by his boxers, came forward. His pants had been feeling unbearably tight.

He then realized what he had done, and froze in embarrassment. He had assumed too much. Pretty Boy would think he was terrible. Opening up his own pants like that, when he was so aroused... it was just too bold of a move.

J groaned in delight as he felt Pretty Boy reach into the gap of his boxers and fondle his flesh directly. Those delicate, slim fingers were traveling around curiously. Sliding, wrapping, squeezing, exploring. J shuddered as Pretty Boy's fingertips rubbed at the wetness coming from the tip. "It's so wet," Pretty Boy whispered.

J felt his cock aching more. "Y-Yeah..." was all he was able to say.

Pretty Boy wrapped his hand around the shaft again. "It's so hard, too."

"Y-Yeah..."

Pretty Boy slid his hand up and down the length. "And it's really big."

"Ohhhh..." J was over the limit now. He couldn't think at all. There wasn't much more that he could take. Hearing Pretty Boy say things like this, feeling him touching him so earnestly...

"I bet it would feel really good inside of me," Pretty Boy breathed in his ear.

J let out a loud groan as his whole body convulsed suddenly. That was too much. Pretty Boy had gone beyond anything he could ever imagine. J came hard, harder than he ever had before. He could feel the orgasm from the tips of his toes all the way up to his scalp.

His release shot out in sharp, quick bursts, spurting out all over Pretty Boy's slightly exposed abdomen and his shirt as well. "Oh God, oh God," J moaned. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." he panted. His body collapsed, pressing Pretty Boy down into the bed. He knew he was making a big mess of them both, but he couldn't help himself. He wrapped his arms around Pretty Boy, holding him close and burying his embarrassed face in the crook of his shoulder.

He was surprised and pleased to hear Pretty Boy whispering soothingly. "Don't be sorry," he told him. "That's what I wanted to happen."

J lifted his red face up to look at Pretty Boy, his eyes wide. "You did?"

Pretty Boy gave a soft laugh. "Yes, silly. Have you forgotten the kinds of books I'm always reading?"

"Oh yeah," J said. He blushed. "You probably know all kinds of stuff that I can't even imagine."

"Mmhmm." Pretty Boy was still looking up at J with those beautiful, wanting eyes.

J looked at him, had to look away, and then returned his gaze. "Did you... uh... did you...?"

"Did I what?" Pretty Boy waited for him to finish.

"Uh... did you really mean... that thing you said... about it would... feel good... _inside_ of you?"

"Mmhmm." Pretty Boy had his hands locked around the back of J's neck. "I've read about that, too. It seems like it would feel really good."

"Oh, wow." J had to lower his head again. He suddenly could totally imagine them doing that, and he was embarrassed to feel himself getting hard again in response. "Do you... wanna do that?"

"Mmhmm..."

J groaned. He was completely hard again. "Wait, wait, wait..." he forced himself to say. "We're going too fast."

"Oh, I'm sorry..." Pretty Boy sounded embarrassed.

"No, don't be sorry!" J lifted his head and made himself look at Pretty Boy's face. "I want to, too. I really, really want to. But, God, I don't know what I'm doing at all. I'd probably hurt you. And we just started going out. I don't expect you to do something like that right away. We ought to... I don't know... like, wait for it to be special or something." He looked away, feeling stupid. What he had just said sounded so cheesy.

To his relief, Pretty Boy kissed his cheek. "You're right," he agreed. "I'm sorry, I just got carried away. I read all those books, and it seems like they always do it right away. It just felt like I was supposed to hurry up and offer it."

"No, you don't have to do that," J assured him. "Like I said, I really, really want to. I want to _so_ bad. But I don't want it to be all rushed and awkward."

"No...me neither. I want it to be... _special_." Pretty Boy breathed out the last word, and J looked down into his sparkling eyes. He swallowed hard, and then couldn't stop himself from kissing Pretty Boy deeply.

When they parted for air, J was surprised to feel Pretty Boy rubbing against him from underneath. He suddenly realized that while he had gotten satisfaction, he hadn't done a thing for Pretty Boy. He could feel Pretty Boy's hardness sliding back and forth against his own.

The stickiness between their bodies had begun to dry into stiffness, but they ignored it the best they could. J rose up on his arms. They were tired from all the pushups at practice, and he shook a little, but he was able to stay up on one arm as he reached down and opened up Pretty Boy's pants with one hand.

Pretty Boy gasped as J reached inside and slid his hand into his underwear, touching his bare skin for the first time. J marveled at how wonderful it was. It was small, but perfectly formed and so hard. He caressed it lovingly with his hand, thrilled to be able to touch Pretty Boy like this.

They kissed again as J stroked Pretty Boy. J treasured each whimper that escaped from Pretty Boy's mouth into his own.

After a while, Pretty Boy broke his lips away to moan more loudly. With a feverish hand, he reached down, seeking out J's manhood again. J groaned as he made contact. He was just as hard and almost as impossibly turned on as he had been before. He was so aroused, that it didn't feel like it would take much for him to climax again.

Pretty Boy's hand was pulling at him insistently, and he sped up the pace of his own stroking. Their bodies came closer together, until their knuckles were grazing each other as they went up and down. Pretty Boy suddenly let go of J's cock, and pushed his hips upward. "J," he panted, "Let's rub them together."

"Oh God, wow..." J groaned. He released Pretty Boy, and watched in amazement as he slid his own pants down on his slim hips, exposing himself completely. It was just as beautiful as he'd imagined, now that he could see it clearly.

J pressed their erections together, and wrapped his large hand around both. He thrust his hips against Pretty Boy, stroking at the same time. His eyes rolled back in his head. It felt so good. It felt so right. Never had anything in his life felt as wonderful as this.

Underneath him, Pretty Boy was mewling like a little kitten and trembling. He reached up and grabbed at J's shoulders, his fingers clenching and unclenching spasmodically. "Oh..." he moaned. "Oh, J..."

J felt a jolt go through his body at hearing Pretty Boy say his name like that. He pumped a little faster. Pretty Boy gave a strangled cry, and there was suddenly a hot gush of fluid pulsing into J's palm. He looked down in amazement when he realized Pretty Boy was coming. That was just so impossibly erotic. He gave several thrusts with his hips, moving his hand quickly, and he went as well, spurting out onto Pretty Boy's abdomen once again.

J panted as he recovered, and then leaned down and kissed Pretty Boy sweetly. Pretty Boy gazed up into his eyes, looking so happy and content that J thought his heart would burst. He rolled off to the side, and then cursed softly at the mess he'd made of Pretty Boy. It was everywhere. He quickly stripped off his shirt and used it to mop up Pretty Boy's body the best that he could.

They lay side by side in the semi-darkness for a while. Pretty Boy traced his fingers over J's bare chest and listened to him breathe heavily. Finally, J sat up, apologizing. "I'd better get home," he said unwillingly. "My parents are gonna get worried if I stay out much longer."

"Okay." Pretty Boy sat up as well.

J looked down at his sticky, matted shirt, and grimaced. "Well, I didn't really think that through, did I? I gotta put this thing back on to go home." He sighed. "And I don't suppose I'm going to be able to borrow anything of yours to wear."

Pretty Boy giggled. "That would look really silly," he agreed.

"Yeah, I don't think I could even get one of your shirts over my head." J sighed again, and pulled the messy shirt on. He looked down. "Yikes. It looks really, really bad." His face flushed. "I guess I could say I spilled a milkshake on myself?"

Pretty Boy giggled again. "And laundry day's not until next Tuesday," he reminded his boyfriend.

"Yeah, you're right," J mused. "This is going to have to rot at the bottom of the hamper for six days." He gave a dry laugh, then looked at Pretty Boy shyly. "Well, I guess this is goodnight..."

"Mmm..." Pretty Boy murmured, tilting his head up for a kiss. "See you in the morning."

"Yeah." J smiled down on him happily.


	3. Chapter 3

When J and Pretty Boy pulled into the driveway the next day, J was surprised to see the blue car parked in the carport. Since he had been picking up and taking Pretty Boy home, that car, which he assumed belonged to Pretty Boy's mother, was only there first thing in the morning. Pretty Boy had explained that his mother usually went to bed at about midnight when she got home from her late shift, and woke up at seven to have breakfast with her son. Then she went back to bed for a little while longer to get a full eight hours. So this was why she was home in the mornings but not visible.

"Is your mom home?" J asked Pretty Boy.

"Oh yeah," Pretty Boy replied. "She's off on Thursdays and Fridays."

"Oh..." J was embarrassed to admit it, but he was disappointed. That meant they couldn't go into Pretty Boy's room and be alone. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow morning?"

"Why don't you come in and meet her?" Pretty Boy suggested. He was turned to J, his eyes wide and imploring.

"Huh?" J hadn't expected this. Frankly, he was a little scared. "Meet your mom?" He knew vaguely in the back of his mind that it was a "big deal" to meet your boyfriend's parents.

"Yeah."

"Well, I guess..." J shut off the car and got out. They entered the house together.

"Mom, I'm home!" Pretty Boy called as he stepped inside.

A middle aged woman, who was very beautiful in a faded way, appeared around the corner. Her eyes immediately went to J. She looked at him, that same sort of vague expression on her face that Pretty Boy often had. "Oh, who is this?" she asked.

"This is J," Pretty Boy said. He laid a hand on J's arm. "The one who-"

"The one who saved you from the bullies!" she finished. After she had met her son at the hospital, where he was being treated for his injuries, he had told her all about how J and his friends had rescued him. She came forward and took his hands. "I can't thank you enough for what you did. You are a wonderful person."

"Oh, uh..." J didn't really know what to say in response.

"Would you like to stay for dinner?" she asked, letting his hands go. "Please, do."

"Okay, thanks," J said.

Pretty Boy's mom smiled. "Well, you boys can start on your homework in the dining room until dinner is ready."

"Yes, ma'am," J responded. "Let me just call my parents first. Um, sorry..." He ducked out of the house and headed back to the car, pulling out his cell phone as he went. The phone was ringing as he reached behind the front seat and grabbed his backpack. His mother answered. "Hey Mom, it's me," J said. "I'm having dinner at a friend's house tonight, is that okay?" She replied in the affirmative, and he assured her he would be home afterwards.

He slipped the phone back into his pocket and went back inside, toting his backpack. Of course, he hadn't told his parents anything about Pretty Boy. They knew that he had gotten injured protecting a schoolmate from attacks, but that was the extent of their knowledge. J didn't know where to begin with them. He was pretty sure they would not like the idea of him dating a boy. That kind of thing just wasn't done. All three of J's brothers had girlfriends, and their parents were strict enough with that, not wanting the boys to be alone with the girls. He couldn't imagine their disdain if they found out their football playing son was gay.

J set his backpack down next to the table, and took a seat next to Pretty Boy, who already had his English homework spread out. J took out his own math homework and started examining it. Math definitely wasn't his best subject. Really, nothing was. He had to work really hard just to get C's and the occasional B if he was lucky.

He suddenly heard Pretty Boy's voice at his elbow. "Do you need help?" he asked.

"Oh, uh..." J turned to him.

"You just look a little lost," Pretty Boy explained. He was smiling up at J. "I'm kind of good at math. What do you need help with?"

"Everything," J admitted. He poked his pencil at the first problem. "I just don't get what this means. What do they even want me to do?"

"Oh, I see why you're having trouble," Pretty Boy said. He took his own pencil, and began writing out a simpler explanation of the process. Even though J was a grade ahead of him, Pretty Boy was in a more advanced class and had already done the kind of math that J needed help with.

Pretty Boy helped him for about fifteen minutes, at which point J was able to take over himself and start attempting the assigned problems.

When dinner was finally ready, the boys cleared their work away from the table and put it away. The three of them sat there, eating, and Pretty Boy's mom looked up. "I really appreciate you taking him to school every morning, and bringing him home," she said to J. "He told me about it at breakfast. And how he got to watch your football practice yesterday."

"Y-yeah," J said. "I hoped it wouldn't be too boring for him. I just didn't want him walking home alone. Not after what just happened."

"Yes..." Pretty Boy's mother sighed. "It's so terrible. I didn't know what to do about it. The bullies, always the bullies. Why can't they leave him alone? I just don't understand it." She took a sip of her water. "Haven't they got anything better to do? It's horrible."

Pretty Boy reached over and laid a hand on his mother's arm. "It's okay, Mom," he assured her. "I have J to protect me from now on."

"That's good," she said, flashing a grateful smile at J. "But still, I worry about you beyond the immediate future. I mean, J can't protect you forever."

"I will!" J insisted vehemently. "I'll protect him forever!"

Pretty Boy's mom was taken aback initially, and then smiled and laughed. "You're a very good friend, J. You must like him a lot."

"I _love_ him!" J exclaimed. Then he caught himself, putting his hand over his mouth. He cast his eyes down, feeling his face getting hot. "Um...I..."

Pretty Boy was speaking now. "He's my boyfriend, Mom." He said it so plainly, so calmly, with no shame at all.

Pretty Boy's mom just looked back and forth between then for a few seconds. J watched her in sheer terror. Then, to his relief, she smiled. "Oh, that's so nice," she said. "I wondered when you would get a boyfriend. You're already sixteen, after all. And you're so pretty. I knew someone would notice you eventually."

J was left speechless.

After dinner, he and Pretty Boy sat on the couch in front of the TV. Pretty Boy's mom was doing something in the kitchen. "Wow, your mom is okay with it," J marveled.

"Oh, yes, I figured she would be," Pretty Boy said. He crossed his legs and moved his ankle in a small circle. "So..." he said, reaching over and holding J's hand. "You said that you love me." He looked up at J through his long eyelashes.

J flushed. "Y-yeah, I did. And yeah, I do."

"I love you, too," Pretty Boy replied, sighing. "I have ever since you rescued me."

"I have since the minute I laid eyes on you," J murmured. He felt Pretty Boy squeeze his hand, and he glanced over at him.

"I wish my mom wasn't home tonight," Pretty Boy whispered, looking up at him with those devastatingly gorgeous eyes.

"Oh, y-yeah..." J stammered. "We can't really be alone, can we..."

"No," Pretty Boy lamented. "My door doesn't even have a lock. But... at least we got to spend some time together today."

Pretty Boy's mom entered the room and took a seat on the couch, picking up the remote. She didn't bat an eye at their intertwined hands. "J, would you like to stay and watch a movie with us?"

"Oh, thank you, ma'am, but I told my parents I would be home after dinner. I really should get going."

"Oh, well, come back anytime," Pretty Boy's mom told him. "You are always welcome."

"Thank you," J said, as he got up and crossed the room to get his backpack. "And thank you so much for dinner."

She nodded and smiled, then turned her attention to the TV.

Pretty Boy walked J to the door. "Good night," he said, and then tilted his chin up and closed his eyes.

J flushed, glanced back towards the living room, where Pretty Boy's mom was visible, and then looked back down. Pretty Boy was still waiting, his hands clasped in front of his chest, and his lips pursed. J would have been embarrassed to kiss him when his mom might see, but he figured his mom was okay with it so far, so...

J leaned down and gave Pretty Boy a quick peck on the lips. Pretty Boy gave a happy little sigh, and opened his eyes. "I love you," he breathed softly.

"I l-love you too," J responded, and then he took his leave, with a pounding heart.

When J got home, his family was all watching sitcoms in the TV room. His mother looked up at him. "Welcome home, J," she called.

"Hey," J replied. He dropped his backpack by the couch and sat down with him.

J had two older brothers and one younger one. His older brothers were already in college, both on sports scholarships. His oldest brother played hockey, and was a junior at the state university. His next oldest brother played basketball, and was a freshman at the same university. J's youngest brother was still in middle school, and played soccer. All four boys were over six feet, varying in bulk, but tending to be muscular. They took after their father, who was a retired professional football player. He was now a P.E. teacher at a local elementary school. J's mother, who was much smaller than the rest of her family, was also a teacher, teaching science at her youngest son's middle school. They were all blonde, and somewhat plain, but pleasant enough looking people.

"Where you been?" J's younger brother teased him. "Finally got a girlfriend?"

"N-No..." J stammered. He could feel his face getting hot.

"Man, you're such a loser. You gotta at least try, you know. Nobody's going to go out with you unless you at least ASK them."

"I know that," J muttered. He knew that very well, because he had finally asked someone out for the first time just two days before. But he couldn't let his family know that. Not yet.

"Leave him alone," J's father said, flipping the channel during the commercial to check the scores on a baseball game. "At least we have one son that we don't have to constantly worry about getting girls pregnant. You boys are the worst skirt chasers."

J's younger brother argued, while J thought to himself, _"No, you won't ever have to worry about me getting anyone pregnant."_

"And besides," the younger brother concluded. "My girlfriend is saving herself for marriage. We don't do that stuff." He sulked in embarrassment.

"Ha!" J's mother spoke up. "I've seen that girl around school. Saving herself for marriage _indeed_. She ought to get rid of all those low cut blouses if that's her goal."

J's family continued to bicker, and J excused himself to return to his room and get ready for bed. If his parents had this much of a problem with their straight sons dating, he couldn't even imagine their disapproval if he tried to bring Pretty Boy home.

"So, we either have to keep it a secret until we're adults, or we're gonna have to deal with the consequences now," J said to himself. He realized with a start what this meant. It wasn't even an option in his mind to let go of Pretty Boy if his parents disapproved. Thinking back to dinner time, when he had sworn to Pretty Boy's mother that he would protect him forever, he knew what this meant - he wanted to spend his life with Pretty Boy. Vague images floated through his mind - moving in together, doing chores side by side, falling asleep in the same bed. He had to smile at the thought of it.

Then he sighed. Surely, all kids in love had similar fantasies, which most of the time turned out to be impossible. Everyone wanted to be with the person they were dating forever. That's what they thought at the time, anyway. Then he considered it more. No, his older brothers were quite flippant about their girlfriends. They always scoffed at the idea of commitment. Any time that they had an opportunity to trade their current girlfriend in for a "better" one, they took it.

J didn't feel like that at all. Pretty Boy was the beginning, the end, and everything in between.

He fell asleep that night thinking happily of Pretty Boy.

The next day, while they were pulling in to school, Pretty Boy informed J that his mother would be picking him up after lunch to take him to the dentist. "That's okay," J said. "I've got a game tonight. I could have swung you home real quick beforehand, but if your mom's coming to get you, that's good too."

"Mmm," Pretty Boy agreed. He glanced around, and when he made sure no one was near, he leaned over the gear shift and kissed J. "Good luck on your math test. And the game."

That afternoon, J found himself missing Pretty Boy terribly. He was putting on his equipment with his friends before their pre-game warmup, and G spoke up. "Man, J, you look sad. Everything okay?"

"Huh?" J snapped his helmet into place and turned to look at him, his expression still distracted. "Oh, yeah, I'm okay."

"Where's Pretty Boy? He's not coming to the game?" T asked.

"Huh? Oh, no. He had to go to the dentist this afternoon."

G clapped him on the shoulder. "Don't look so down," he advised. "Just 'cause he's not here to watch you, don't forget to get into the game."

"Don't worry, I'll get into it once it starts," J assured him.

C grinned and leaned in. "Speaking of getting... you gotten any more kisses?" The three friends all stifled their giggles. None of them was dating, so they were living vicariously through J.

J became very red in the face as everything that happened Wednesday night flashed through his head. There was definitely a lot more than just kissing. "Uh, yeah..." he said, then coughed in embarrassment.

T and C cut their eyes at each other. Then C waggled his eyebrows. "You sure are blushing over the thought of it."

"So did any more happen?" T demanded.

J starting sweating. "I... I d-don't know what you're talking about..." he murmured, bending down to tie his cleats.

G whispered in C's ear. "Oh man... do you think they did it?"

"I don't know!" C hissed.

"Ask him..." G pleaded.

"You ask him!" C countered.

"Hey, J," G began. "So, uh... have you guys like...?"

"No!" J answered quickly, still looking tremendously embarrassed.

"Oh, man, they totally did," G whispered excitedly. The three friends all looked at each other, nodding frantically.

"No, we didn't!" J said emphatically. He averted his eyes.

"Oh, sorry, dude," T said. "We're being so nosy. But, aw, man, we're excited for you!"

C cut in. "You know what? From how totally embarrassed you are, I think..." He lowered his voice. "Did you make the moves on him and he turned you down?" T and G looked at each other and nodded sagely. That must be the solution.

"It wasn't like that at all!" J insisted, his manly pride wounded. "_He_ wanted to, but..." He trailed off as he realized he had overshared.

T, C, and G's mouths fell open in unison. "You're freaking kidding me," C groaned. "_You_ turned _him_ down? What an idiot!"

"No, I didn't. I mean, I did. I mean, we did _stuff_. He wanted to go all the way and I said we should wait until it was special." J's voice droned down into a mutter, feeling mortified. Had he done the wrong thing? Should he have just gone with the moment? That night, he had actually felt regretful that maybe he had let too much happen. But now he worried that he hadn't let _enough_ happen. He couldn't look up at his friends. Surely, they thought he had blown his opportunity.

He couldn't have been more surprised as they started making approving noises. "That's super boss of you," T marveled. "I bet he's got some mad respect for you now."

J shrugged, feeling embarrassed but pleased. The coach came into the locker room, and called everyone out on the field.

It was a home game tonight, against West County High. After a warm up, the coach huddled everyone up for a strategy session. "...and I don't want you to fumble. J, I wanna see some more of those no-holds barred hits. Can you do that for me?"

"Yes, sir!" J responded eagerly.

"All right. Looks like the other team is here. Let's get out there, and fight, fight, fight!"

The team gave a rallying cry, and soon the game was started. West County High was a longtime rival, but due to it being such a larger area, they had always won in previous years. They just had a lot more excellent players to choose from. The goal that Northside had every year was just to not lose _too_ badly.

However, the crowd was impressed when Northside not only prevented West County from scoring in the first quarter, they actually made a touchdown themselves. That just had never happened before.

This was mostly due to J's hard tackles. He went all out for the other team's quarterback any time that he had the ball. Then when the ball was recovered, Northside's quarterback did his best to move it towards their own end zone. He was successful right before the whistle was blown to end the first quarter.

During the short break, J took off his helmet, wiped his eyes, and took a long sip of sports drink. His eyes scanned over the crowd. There were a lot of people. It seemed like the rivalry was pretty popular.

Just when he was about to look away and put his helmet back on, his eyes were drawn to something sparkling on the home side of the bleachers. He couldn't believe it when he saw Pretty Boy there. He had come to see the game! And much to J's relief, Pretty Boy's mother was there with him. J didn't like the idea of Pretty Boy being out alone at night, not without someone with him.

They caught his gaze and both waved in unison. J waved back, and then put his helmet back on to rejoin the game.

If he had already been giving his all for the first quarter, he turned it up a notch for the rest of the game, knowing that Pretty Boy was in the audience. As a result, Northside beat West County for the first time in eight years - 14-0. It was a huge upset, and no one could be more pleased than their coach. He showered praise on the team, and encouraged them to keep the momentum going for the rest of the season.

J walked over to the fence that separated the field from the bleachers. Pretty Boy and his mother were standing there, waiting to talk to him. "You did great!" Pretty Boy exclaimed. He threw his arms out, and J leaned over the fence to receive a hug.

"Thanks," J murmured. He really wished he could kiss Pretty Boy, but he figured a hug was enough public display of affection anyway. "Thank you so much for coming." He nodded at Pretty Boy's mom, including her in this appreciation.

"Of course," Pretty Boy said happily.

T, C, and G appeared then. "Hey, Pretty Boy," G said shyly. "Thanks for coming out to watch our game."

"He didn't come to see you," T chuckled, elbowing him.

"I know that," G hissed.

"Oh, but you all did so well!" Pretty Boy insisted.

"R-Really?" C said. "Gosh..."

"He ain't talking to you," T admonished him.

"He said that we _all_ did well," C insisted.

"Yeah, well you did a whole lot of nothing. You coulda intercepted that pass but you were too busy staring up at the stars!"

"No, I wasn't!"

"I saw you too!" The three guys bickered back and forth. Pretty Boy giggled at their antics.

J just prayed they wouldn't say anything to embarrass him or hint that they knew any intimate details - especially not in front of Pretty Boy's mother! But they just continued to laugh and rag each other for Pretty Boy's amusement.

Everyone parted ways soon after, with J casting a wistful glance back at Pretty Boy. He realized that he wasn't going to see him again until Monday morning, and that made him sad.

In bed that night, J was surprised as his phone vibrated on the side table. He pulled it over towards his face, and saw that it was a text from Pretty Boy. They had exchanged phone numbers last week, when they were first getting to know each other, but before the attack. They hadn't communicated much by phone though, because they saw each other so frequently.

"Are you busy tomorrow?" it read.

"No, are you?" J typed back.

"No."

J paused, waiting for more to come, but it didn't. He expected Pretty Boy to say something else, and he was a bit puzzled as to why he had just left it off like that. Then J groaned, feeling stupid. He realized what Pretty Boy wanted. He wanted J to take the initiative and invite him on a date.

A date... J was a bit overwhelmed. They hadn't actually gone on a date yet. Sure, they had spent lots of time together, but they hadn't gone anywhere. He pulled himself out of his thoughts, knowing that he needed to give a response soon or Pretty Boy would be disappointed and think he wasn't interested.

"Do you want to go somewhere with me?" he rapidly tapped out, his hands feeling sweaty and nervous.

"Sure!" came the quick reply.

J paused again. What kind of date should he suggest? He'd never gone on one. He had hazy visions of dates in movies. People would go for a walk in the park, or out to a fancy dinner. Or... to the movies!

"Want to go see a movie?" J texted.

"Okay!"

"I'll check the listings tomorrow morning, and we can figure out what we want to see and when. Okay?"

"Yeah!"

J smiled at his phone. "Great. Good night..."

"Good night. I love you. :)"

J's heart thumped in his chest. "I love you too." He laid the phone aside, hugged his pillow happily, and settled down to sleep.


End file.
